Spire (NYSE:SR) PT Lowered to $64.00

Spire (NYSE:SR - Free Report) had its price target decreased by Morgan Stanley from $67.00 to $64.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the utilities provider's stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on SR. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Friday, April 12th. They issued a buy rating and a $68.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Spire from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Mizuho cut shares of Spire from a buy rating to a neutral rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $64.00 to $62.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Spire from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH started coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Friday, April 26th. They set a neutral rating and a $57.50 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $61.83.

Spire Stock Performance

Shares of SR traded up $0.66 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $59.26. 248,175 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 445,948. Spire has a 52 week low of $53.77 and a 52 week high of $66.48. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $60.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $60.49. The firm has a market cap of $3.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09.

Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $3.45 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.86 by ($0.41). The business had revenue of $1.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.21 billion. Spire had a return on equity of 7.88% and a net margin of 9.05%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.70 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Spire will post 4.32 EPS for the current year.

Spire Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.755 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 11th. This represents a $3.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.10%. Spire's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.26%.

Insider Transactions at Spire

In other Spire news, EVP Steven P. Rasche purchased 4,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $23.83 per share, for a total transaction of $107,235.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president now owns 16,500 shares in the company, valued at $393,195. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.86% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Spire

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Spire in the fourth quarter valued at $2,001,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Spire during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,130,000. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Spire by 11.6% during the fourth quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 772,012 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $48,127,000 after purchasing an additional 80,405 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Spire by 275.4% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 313,212 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $17,722,000 after purchasing an additional 229,771 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Spire by 125.6% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 627,548 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $39,121,000 after purchasing an additional 349,393 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.36% of the company's stock.

About Spire

Spire Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the purchase, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and other end-users of natural gas in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Gas Utility, Gas Marketing, and Midstream. It is also involved in the marketing of natural gas and related services; and transportation and storage of natural gas.